Day 3 Saturday, February 22
Ryan and his dad woke up early and headed out to do their favorite thing: golf! While they were gone, I lazily got ready, ate breakfast, cleaned up our stuff a bit (this was our last night staying on the military base), and then headed out with Ryan's aunts and grandma to the volcano overlook and visitor center. We saw the volcano steaming and some huge craters.
Huge crater with lava down inside of it steaming. You can't actually see the lava unless you take a helicopter ride and go above it to look down into the crater. Maybe we'll have to do that next time :)
After our lazy morning, we met up with Vivian and everyone else (minus the golfers) who had gone on a 3 mile hike that morning. We headed to the Thurston Lava Tube which was a lot like the lave tube we went to the day before but this one was a lot shorter, safer, and lit. Think of it as this one was for tourists and the other one was for locals. haha. It was still pretty amazing. Just think how much lava there was (and still is) on this island. I can't think about it too much or else I get a little scared something is going to erupt!
Ryan and Scott finally got back from golfing and so we all headed on another long drive. First we drove the Chain of Craters Road which takes you past several different craters made from eruptions over time. (Some as recent as the 70's!!) It's crazy how there is so much variety to the scenery on this island. One day you can see waterfalls and green, lush rain forest and then the next day see lava covering everything. Black rock as far as you can see.
Along the drive, we stopped to do a mile hike to see the petroglyphs carved into the lava. However, there are signs everywhere saying that if you are pregnant, the fumes from the lava can be harmful to your baby, so you shouldn't go walking on the lava. So I stayed in the car with a couple of other people who didn't feel like making the hike in the heat. Below are some of the petroglyphs they saw. Ryan said it was cool but it was really hot so it was okay that I missed it. :)
The road ends now because lava flowed down and covered the road. They haven't ever fixed the road so you just stop and then turn around and go back to where you came from. They had these cool "arches" off the side of the cliff. The water kinda beats against the rock and makes these arches until eventually, it is too weak and the lava just falls into the water.
The end of our long drive took us to South Point--the southernmost tip of the US.
This was a platform at the edge of the cliff. For what, you ask? Cliff jumping of course!! It was far and really scary. Some girl did it while we were there. Let's just say I'm glad it was her and not me.
Cool blow hole at South Point
At this point, we split up with Ryan's family because they were heading home that night. So they all headed to the airport and we just headed back to Hilo area. Ryan had another mission friend who lived up near the volcano he wanted to stop and see so we were planning on doing that. We drove all the way back and then she still wasn't home (she was working in Hilo) so we contemplated waiting around the volcano area for a while until she got home but decided to just go into Hilo to get dinner (I was starving). Turns out it was better that way because she was still in Hilo when we got down there so she just met up with us while we ate dinner at some plate lunch place (yes, again). Ryan said this happened all the time on his mission. People are definitely on "Hawaiian time" and they may or may not keep appointments you make with them. I don't know if I could handle that very well.
Me and my loco moco. Ryan LOVES these so much and I always said, GROSS!! This trip, I must have had my guard down because I decided they weren't too terrible. Still not my very favorite thing in the world, but the fact that I actually ordered this is kind of a huge deal.
Ryan and Sister Narvaez. She was one of my favorite people. So hilarious and kind. Again, it is so fun to talk to people who knew Ryan as Elder Gardner.
After catching up with her for a while, we headed to our Bed and Breakfast. I always wanted to stay in a B&B and since we only had one more night on the Hilo side of the island, we decided to stay in a B&B. However, it's kinda "off the beaten path" to say the least so Sister Narvaez said she would drive us most of the way up there so we didn't get lost in the dark. She was so nice and she was right because we never would have found it on our own.
Funny experience: as we came up to the B&B, it was kinda late, but not too late (9pm) and raining. We couldn't really find where we were supposed to go so we were driving by the three buildings on the property. As we were looking around, the owner came out and told us where to go. The only way I can explain him is that he probably smoked a little too much weed in his day and he was a total surfer guy. Anyway, apparently if you check in after dark, they don't wait up for you. They just leave the key in the door and your name on the door. Kinda weird, but okay... We crashed early (like every night) because I was so exhausted and were excited to explore the property in the morning!
Day 4 Sunday, February 23
The B&B we stayed at was called The Inn at Kulaniapia Falls. It was an amazing property. We had a little sitting area off of our room and then you could walk outside from there and see the gorgeous waterfall right there. So all night long we slept to the sound of the waterfall. It was so relaxing and Ryan swears it was the best night's sleep he ever got. haha. It was really soothing.
Anyway, we got up early the next morning so we could explore the property before heading off to church. We took a nice walk around their bamboo gardens and then up a trail to the base of the waterfall. It was the perfect amount of "hiking" for a pregnant lady :)
Anyway, we got up early the next morning so we could explore the property before heading off to church. We took a nice walk around their bamboo gardens and then up a trail to the base of the waterfall. It was the perfect amount of "hiking" for a pregnant lady :)
The view from off the back of our room. So lush, green, and gorgeous!
Me in the bamboo gardens. This was one of the MANY types of bamboo trees they had growing on the property.
The view from the base of the waterfall. I guess you can actually go swimming in the pool at the bottom of the falls. You just have to get permission from the owner (basically so he can tell you if the conditions are okay for you to swim). We really wanted to take an early morning dip but it was Sunday so we decided against it. Looked so refreshing though!!
Me and Kulaniapia Falls
Ryan at the base of the falls. (Can you tell the sun was right in his eyes...) The nice thing about getting up early and doing the nature walk before breakfast was that there was no one else exploring the property. It was like we had our own private waterfall.
I love those moments--when you feel like you have Hawaii all to yourself!
After our walk, we came back to our room to have breakfast. So the B&B was basically like a big house and each room had a different guest in it and its own bathroom, but then there was a main kitchen/dining area where they have breakfast. Our "cook" or "hostess" or whatever you want to call her was named Leah. She made her famous Mac Nut Waffles. I didn't have any, of course, but Ryan said they were pretty good (not really worthy of being called famous, but good nonetheless). Anyway, the whole feeling of the B&B is so different than staying in a hotel. Everyone sits around the dining table and talks about what they've been doing in Hawaii, where they are from, their lives, their experiences on the Island. It is filled with small talk and a getting to know you vibe. Leah would make her waffles and then tell guests what she suggests they do that day, giving insider tips from a local of what is open when and what she would do. We sat at a table with another couple who had done the hike into Waipio valley the previous day (it was like a 15 mile hike because they hiked all the way back to the base of the waterfall). It was just an interesting group of people. I didn't know if I would like staying at a B&B because I thought it might be this way, but turns out it was kinda fun. You get some quirky people, but a neat experience. I wouldn't want to stay there for my whole stay, but it was fun for a night.
After breakfast, we got cleaned up and ready for church and then headed to the Hilo ward where Ryan served 12 1/2 years ago. We walked in and it was such a great feeling in that ward. People were so accepting and loving. Everyone speaks "pigeon" which is "really hard to understand English" but I caught most of what people were saying. The family Ryan knew from his mission was in this ward (he is in the bishopric) and he was conducting. So at the start of the meeting, they welcomed back "Elder Gardner and his wife." That made me laugh. Also, it was fast and testimony meeting so Ryan bore his testimony and so did the man Ryan helped reactivate. It was a great meeting. Afterward, I was amazed at how many people came up to Ryan and remembered him from when he was there. Ryan was having the time of his life talking to all those people and catching up.
We stayed for Sunday School and Relief Society. Again, the feeling in those meetings are very different from what we have here in Utah. I just felt like those sisters in RS all loved each other, accepted each other for who they were, and were absolutely not judging in any way. It was a reminder to me of how we need to be better. I wish all wards had this same feeling of love.
This is Ryan outside of the apartment he used to live in, which sits on the Church property.
After church, we headed over to the other side of the Island. We decided to go through the middle of the Island rather than going all the way around (since we'd basically done both those drives before). It is crazy the elevation changes we went through. We drove Saddle Road. It ended up being really rainy and since we were so high up, it was very foggy. There were times when you can't see very far in front of you and then all the sudden, you would come down in elevation and basically come out of the clouds. We drove right by the base of Mauna Kea. It was a pretty drive, but a little scary at times...
We checked into our hotel, the Waikoloa Marriott, and then skyped with Emry. This was the first time we actually skyped with Emry. I had talked to my parents the other days but we were so busy and with the time difference, we never did get to actually see her until today! Let's be honest, she couldn't have cared less that we were there. She was having a blast with Grandma and didn't miss us at all. That made me feel good and bad. I'm glad she wasn't having a hard time with us being gone, but I was sad she wasn't missing us. Haha. Motherhood!!
After talking with Emry, we decided to explore the property and beach at the resort. It is such a beautiful resort with gorgeous views and a nice beach. We sat on the beach for a while watching the sun fall and then walked down the beach to see the sunset. It was gorgeous! We sat by an "on the beach" restaurant that had a hula dancer and Hawaiian music playing so it was a nice ambiance. As we were sitting there, we also saw two whales breach. They were far away but you could see this thing come up and then a HUGE splash. I've said it before and I'll say it again: we could watch whales forever!! They are such amazing animals!
Ryan doesn't like sunglasses... Also, I'm so happy to finally be sitting on a beach!
Bare feet, sand, and water. That's a Hawaiian vacation to me!
Oh ya, I was happy!
Beautiful sunsets!
We walked around the nearby mall and stopped for dinner at Island Fish and Chips, headed back to the hotel to watch some Olympics, and fall asleep by 9! (Ya, we went to bed early a lot on this trip!)
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